Drink Me
by Echoing Fantasy
Summary: Tsuna was used to his father drinking. And then over time, he got used to his mother drinking too. It was understandable, in a twisted sort of way. But he should have realized that when Reborn arrived, everything had to change. That included his mother's drinking. It isn't until he graduates that things come to a head, however. Angst, fatherly!Reborn.


_Drink Me_

"Dame-Tsuna."

In the middle of dressing for the graduation that would take place in a few hours, Tsuna looked up to find his adult-bodied tutor leaning against his door frame, dressed in a fine white dress shirt and jacket with pressed pants and shined shoes. "You look good, Reborn."

Reborn inclined his head in thanks. "You're getting there your own self. Now that I've taught you to dress yourself properly, you're actually making an effort."

It was a small joke at Tsuna's expense; after Reborn had started growing again, he had taken to raiding Tsuna's closet at periodically intervals and proclaiming to all and sundry that his student might have picked up his grades and his battle abilities, but he was still a complete dame when it came to dressing. And so in an effort to shut him up, Tsuna had agreed to take Reborn's Class of Dress and Style.

Needless to say, he came out ninety percent scarred for life and ten percent learned, which quickly reversed itself once Reborn threw him headfirst into an upper-crust clothing store and told him that his Guardians (including Chrome) would require an outfit for his graduation. Tsuna had shrieked and wailed, but he'd picked out the perfect outfit for every last Guardian, managing something that would allow them freedom of movement and comfort while keeping them spiffy. Reborn had given him a passing grade, and proclaimed his job done.

"It's all thanks to you, as usual," Tsuna told the hitman as he pulled his socks up. He frowned when one of his toes poked something squishy and moist at the bottom of his sock, and immediately pulled it off to discover someone had shoved chocolate pudding (at least he _hoped _that's what it was) in the toe. Huffing, he tossed it into the trash. "Lambo's been in my socks again."

The click of a gun told him Reborn didn't find it any funnier than he did. "I'll kill that cow."

"Not if I get to him first. That's the third pair he's ruined in as many weeks." Teenager he might have been, but Reborn's lessons had done their job, and Tsuna was starting to appreciate the effort it took to look nice every day. How Reborn managed, he could only speculate. "Damn it, its in this one too!"

Reborn growled and moved from his spot to help Tsuna raid his drawer for a pair of unsoiled socks. "I will _not _have my student show up to graduation in one sock."

"I_ refuse _to show up in graduation in one sock. It's embarrassing!"

"It's unorthodox."

"It's not..." Tsuna gesticulated, trying to find the word to match what was going on in his head. Fortunately, Reborn had known him long enough to know what he meant without his having to say it.

"It's not _you,_ Tsuna." He raised a pair of white socks up and frowned at the brown spot. "It's official, I'm not only going to kill that cow, I'm going to maim, poach, fry and **scramble **that cow."

"As long as you don't do it in my room—Aha! Found one!" Grinning, he shoved the sock onto his foot, before looking back at Reborn. "So, what's up? I know you didn't just come here to help me find a sock."

"No, I didn't. Actually, I came here to ask what you think about going to Italy after your graduation."

Tsuna frowned. "So soon? Is everything okay?"

Reborn waved the concerns away. "Nono is fine; its just I thought you might appreciate a few weeks exploring, getting used to the place you'll one day be running. It's a fairly large area after all, and each area operates differently. Plus you'll want to get to know your neighbors and such."

Tsuna considered it. It would be good to get away from Japan for a while. But it would also allow him time to see Gokudera's homeland, and as Reborn pointed out, get to know the world he would someday hold in his hands... or possibly destroy. "I take it you plan to teach us Italian at some point?"

"On the plane ride, actually. I hope you have a good memory."

The brunet smacked his forehead. Trust Reborn to be so demanding. "Of course."

"Excellent. Nono has a private jet we'll be taking, so after graduation there will be someone ready to take you guys to the airport."

"We're not sticking around to say goodbye?"

Reborn rolled his eyes. "What's in Namimori that you won't see again, Tsuna? Besides, those classmates of yours are irritating. They're so sure that you're going to fail, but you're already far higher than they are in rank. There's no point in sticking around with such annoying people. They'll only hinder you."

Which was Reborn's own way of complimenting Tsuna's achievements. The brunet smiled; four years later and Reborn was still the same way as ever. "Yeah, I know. I just worry a bit."

"Well don't. Let _us_ worry, you just need to concentrate on learning and absorbing. That's what a good boss does."

Pulling Tsuna to his feet, Reborn brushed a bit of dirt off his formal jacket before tweaking the collar a bit and straightening his tie. When he deemed Tsuna's uniform appropriate he gave a tiny nod. Tsuna smiled and shook his head.

"Only you, Reborn," he said. Then he paused. "Could we... maybe _not _duck out immediately after the ceremony?"

Reborn cocked an eyebrow.

"I was thinking... since we're not going to be coming back here for a while, it probably wouldn't hurt to throw one last party at Takesushi, right? I mean, we _are _graduating, and all..."

Now it was Reborn's turn to shake his head, smiling. "You've gotten spoiled, Tsuna. I'll have to remedy that when we get to Italy." Running his fingers along his curly sideburns, he considered the request. "I suppose it could be done."

"I'll bring extras back so Nono and the others can have some," Tsuna said, already aware of what his teacher was thinking.

Reborn smirked. "Good. Then consider it done. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go check on how the others are doing. Once you're done getting dressed, go ahead and go to the car. We'll meet you there."

* * *

The ceremony was blissfully short, considering the occasion. As with any major graduation, the graduates sang a few songs of goodbye, and then sang to the junior class, before going up to get their diplomas, snap a couple of pictures, and say their goodbyes to their friends and fellow classmates. All in all it was a very organized occasion, which Tsuna felt some relief about. He felt even more relief that Lambo and I-pin didn't explode or bring the usual level of chaos to the floor – he didn't need to give the school a reason to hold him back another year.

Of course, having Nana on one side of them and Reborn on the other might have had something to do with it.

When it was finally over and the students were milling about, Tsuna moved to talk to his mother and his Guardians, who all looked equally as happy that their schooling had finally come to an end. Even Hibari was there, although he kept a careful distance from everyone else (easily done by the wide berth given to him by others).

"Tsu-kun!" His mother embraced him, which Tsuna allowed with only the smallest of grimaces. Reborn smirked, tilting his fedora down to hide his eyes. Like that, he missed the way the grimace on Tsuna's face seemed to freeze, and his eyes closed in a silent prayer for patience.

The faint smell of vodka was on his mother's breath. That alone told him the kind of night it was going to be, and what he would need to expect in the next few hours. Images of him and his friends partying until it was time to leave, and then collapsing into sleep on the plane ride over vanished, replaced with bitter memories of empty glasses and bottles scattered across the kitchen, and his unconscious mother draped over his small shoulders, her weight heavy as he pulled her upstairs to her own room.

"Tsuna?"

He snapped out of the memories as Reborn called his name. He turned to find his tutor frowning at him lightly. "Just because you're out of common schooling doesn't mean you get to ignore _me._"

Tsuna pulled back, holding up his hands in surrender as a glow enveloped Leon, shifting him into gun form. "I-I know that! I was just thinking about some things..."

Reborn clicked his tongue in irritation, and Leon shifted back. "The only thing you should be thinking about is how you plan to memorize a lifetime's worth of Italian before we reach Nono." His smirk was poisonous. "Or do you not remember that you can't even recall the simplest of words in front of a large crowd, like the one that will _undoubtedly _be in Nono's home?"

"Well excuse _me _for having stage fright," Tsuna muttered. He didn't even attempt to duck the smack Reborn aimed at the back of his head. It didn't hurt so much anymore – Reborn could _make _it hurt, if he really wanted to, but Tsuna liked to think maybe he'd stopped doing that out of the goodness of his own heart.

"A mafia boss doesn't get stage fright," Reborn chided with a roll of his eyes. "And you're practically an adult, Dame-Tsuna, you should start acting like it."

"Says the man that's been trapped in the body of an _infant _for the last years of his life," Tsuna grumbled.

"What was that?" Was it his imagination, or were Reborn's eyes twinkling with mischief?

"N-nothing!" Better to be safe than sorry.

"That's what I thought." Reborn turned his attention elsewhere, and Tsuna let out a breath in relief.

"Tsuna!" A voice called to him from the crowds, and he looked over to see the Yamamotos weaving their way through, father and son grinning broadly. "Ready to head over to Takesushi? Dad's got everything set up already!"

"Really? That sounds like a good idea, then." Tsuna looked around, counting off faces quickly. Most of the family was here – he couldn't see Hibari or Mukuro, though. "Are those two coming?" he asked Reborn.

Reborn shrugged. "I told them the time and place. If they choose not to show up, its on them."

"Let's go ahead and go, Boss. I don't think Hibari's the type to want us to wait up, and _that _bastard won't care either way," Gokudera urged.

"I guess you're right. Alright then, we might as well go."

Cheers came from his friends as they followed the elder Yamamoto to his shop. Even Tsuna couldn't stop a smile, although his eyes followed his mother as she quietly branched off in the other direction, heading for home. Part of him knew what he would have to expect in the coming hours, while the rest of him was too elated to finally be out of school to care.

* * *

_Tsuna couldn't remember when it began exactly, only that one day he'd come home from school and found his mother on the couch, a bottle in her hand like the one his father drank from. When he'd expressed concern over her about it, she'd laughed and told him, "I'm just having a couple of drinks, Tsu-kun! I'll be fine." He'd chosen to believe her then, because she was his mother, and he assumed she knew her own limits. So he shrugged and went to do his homework before going to bed._

_The next time he came home though and she was drinking, she was meaner about it when he asked her. "I can drink if I want, Tsuna. Don't get in such a tizzy over it. You'll ruin my experience."_

_Again and again and again. One glass after the next went down her throat while Tsuna watched, helpless to do or say anything. It was only when she was drunk that he tried to intervene. She'd gotten angrier than he'd ever seen her before, and shoved him into a pane of glass. He'd gotten scars on his shoulders and back – nothing too large to cover up, but the shock that his own mother would do that to him..._

_The next time she drank, he had snatched the bottle from her hand and thrown it out the window. She'd smacked him across the face, screeching at him like he'd tried to kill her. Tsuna quickly learned that trying to stop his mother from drinking was impossible – she only got angry and lashed out at him. But when she was drunk, she still got angry, the only difference being she lashed out with words instead of actions. She would blame him for everything, starting with his birth and ending with his failures at school. _

_As he aged, Tsuna learned how to harden his heart to his mother's words, and deal with the occasional beatings that came when she wasn't quite drunk enough to swing wildly when he came to collect the bottles off the floor and the glasses to wash. The bruises were covered or blamed on bullies, and no teacher wanted to get to know him, so CPS was never called._

_By the time his father came home again, he had his act under control. So did Nana, incidentally. Tsuna avoided them, silently grimacing when Iemitsu drank himself to sleep, and Nana went on about her business, humming cheerfully like she hadn't been the one sitting there three days prior, screaming at her son about what a failure he was._

_Tsuna learned that when Iemitsu was gone long enough, Nana drank. And when Iemitsu was home, she stayed sober, although Iemitsu drank. In a single year's time though, her hands shook whenever he came home and she didn't drink, and her eyes strayed to the bottle more often than not. In two years, she and he were drinking together, and Tsuna took care of the house himself._

_When Reborn came, all of that stopped. Nana didn't drink anymore, although some nights Tsuna thought maybe she might, kids or no. But maybe it was the idea that there was someone else here to witness her lashing out at Tsuna that stopped her. Or maybe she just cared about Lambo and I-pin more than her own struggling offspring._

_He didn't think Reborn knew about Nana's problem. If he had, he'd probably have dragged Tsuna to Italy to live with his father, instead. Or maybe he just wouldn't have cared. All Tsuna knew was that he much preferred Reborn's beatings over Nana's – Reborn usually had a solid reason for his. And Reborn never put blame on Tsuna's shoulders that he didn't deserve. If anything, his days with Reborn only helped him harden his heart more, because Reborn was expecting things of him, things that neither his father nor his mother had ever wanted, or at least never asked for. _

_So Tsuna struggled for praise beneath Reborn's impressive shadow, and tried not to let his mind drift back to the days before and wonder when his mother would pick up the bottle again._

* * *

As predicted, Tsuna's phone rang out before the party had even reached its halfway point, cutting through the din as effectively as a knife. Everyone fell quiet so Tsuna could answer the person on the other line. There was no real need to though – Tsuna knew who was calling and why. He only had to check the caller ID to see that.

"Tenth? Is something wrong?" Gokudera started to get up upon seeing Tsuna's grimace. However, Tsuna was quick to wave him aside and smile again.

"No, everything's fine. I just have to leave for a bit and go help my mom with something. I'll be back later, okay?"

"Do you want us to come with you?" Takeshi asked, beginning to stand. However, he was quickly waved off as well.

"No, no, I know what she needs. It'll be faster if I just go. Enjoy the rest of the party – like I said, I'll be back in a little bit, once I'm done with whatever she needs me to do." He grabbed his shoes and put them on, then called over, "I need you guys to keep the kids here until I come back, okay? Absolutely _do not _let them come home early or sneak off."

"Why?" Now it was Reborn who spoke, suspicion in his eyes. He'd never heard Tsuna talk like this before, and it was a bit alarming. "What's wrong, Tsuna?"

Tsuna sighed, and ran a hand through his hair. "Nothing, Reborn. Could you please just listen to me, and stay here? I _promise _I'll be back." The way he said it almost made Reborn feel like he was talking more to himself than his friends; the suspicion in his mind went up a couple notches, and at once he'd made the decision to follow his student once he was gone and figure out what exactly was so urgent that the party he himself had decided on had to be left early.

Tsuna ran out, the bell on the door chiming, and Reborn listened carefully as his footsteps receded into the distance. Once Reborn had judged his student was far enough away, he stood and moved to the door.

"Hey old man, didn't Tsuna just say-"

Reborn glared at him, and Takeshi flinched back. "I'm going, brats. And that's the end of it. The rest of you stay here and keep an eye on things." And then, just to make sure (and because he _knew _they'd end up following him if he didn't) they listened, he pulled out one of his actual guns, cocked it, and told them, "If any of you follow me, or try to sneak back to Tsuna's before we come back, I'll blow your kneecaps off, capiche?"

"Reborn!" Tsuyoshi scolded, bristling at the threat. "Don't threaten the kids!"

Reborn didn't reply, merely turning and leaving the restaurant, turning in the direction of home. He stuck to the shadows, keeping his movements even and swift, and looked out for the pile of spiky brown hair that would identify his mark. It didn't take him long to find it, mercifully, as Tsuna was held up at a red light in the midst of a crowd, and seemed rather antsy. Both his anxiety towards whatever was ahead and the crowd worked in Reborn's favor, hiding him from Tsuna's perceptive gaze as the red light turned green, and the crowd moved forward.

Tsuna sprinted once he was free of the painted lines, and Reborn was hard-pressed to keep up with him without giving himself away. Nevertheless, he did, and eventually he was treated to the sight of Tsuna arriving home, pale but unwinded. He licked his lips, and tried to open the door. He seemed surprised to find it locked, and searched in the pot next to the door for the key. Finding it, he unlocked the door and opened it.

Reborn watched him go inside, quickly slipping up to the door and neatly inserting a toe to stop it from closing all the way. Distracted as he was by what was in the living room, Tsuna never saw him. Reborn waited with baited breath as Tsuna began to speak to Nana, a pleading tone in his voice. It was answered by a harpy-like shriek and something crashing to the floor.

Something in his chest seemed to explode then, as he heard Tsuna ask Nana to "put the drink down", followed by another shriek from Nana. Gritting his teeth, Reborn surged forward, unable to hold back the burning anger inside him at the idea that his student was hiding something like _this _from him.

* * *

Nana Sawada was by no means a bad woman. Nor was she a bad mother. Negligent, perhaps. A little ditzy, certainly. She had her vices, without doubt. But she tried her best – and that was why Tsuna could never bring himself to hate her. And that was why he had to do this. Why he couldn't let the kids see her ugliness.

"Shu' up! Wha' do you know, _Tsu-kun_? You're called _dame _by your classmates! You've been _dame _all yer life! You-You'll always be dame! N-not-nothing you can do will change it!" Her laughter hurt, but Tsuna put on a brave face and tried again.

"I know that Mom, but really, maybe you should put the drink down-"

"I-I bet you think, now tha' Rebo-chan's around, you think you're _better _than me, d-don't you?" She hiccuped, becoming angrier suddenly. She shoved Tsuna back, and he let her – he would never lay a hand against his own mother, no matter how drunk she got. A sense of bitter disappointment in himself welled up as she continued her drunken rant.

"Y-you were _never _a proper boy, you know tha-that? You were such a-a _freak, _always wanting to be by yourself, n-never talking to others! Y-you always wanted _me _to do something about _your _problems! It's because of _you _that I-I'm the shame of the neighborhood, y'know that? N-nobody's gonna talk to me, because I have _you _for a son. Y-you're such a failure at _everythin' _and I-I shouldn't have never had you."

Her eyes were unfocused as she glared at him. "Y-you ruin everythin', Tsu-kun, and y-you're the reason my husband never comes h-home. It's because _you're _h-here. Th-the shame of the family! Y-you know what? You should just _die, _already. T-then at least I could see my husband, and e-everyone will l-love me again." She tried to spit at his feet, but only managed to successfully drool on herself.

Even drunk as she was, those words hit him like Dino's whip, and Tsuna found himself fighting not to cry, biting his lower lip to stop the sudden sickness welling up inside of him. Before he could become too hurt though, someone else stepped into the fight.

"Don't blame Tsuna for your own shortcomings," A colder-than-ice voice snapped. Tsuna whirled, only to freeze as he saw who was standing behind him.

"Reborn. I-I told you to stay with the kids!" Desperation lit him up like a bonfire. What would Reborn think, now that he had seen Tsuna's secret? Would he blame Tsuna, as Nana so often did? "God, why couldn't you just _listen _to me for once in your life?!"

Reborn didn't even glance at him. "Because its you, Tsuna. If I listened to any of your orders, you'd be dead a thousand times over by now." His glare cut itself into Nana. "You've got a lot of nerve, calling Tsuna a failure when all he's done is fix other people's mistakes. Including yours, by the looks of it."

"I..." Tsuna tried to find his voice, tried to find the words that would make an excuse, or tell some sort of lie. But in the back of his mind his conscience was whispering that this was _Reborn, _who didn't deserve to be lied to. So in the end he just stared at the floor and let his voice drift away. He didn't know why, but he felt _tired _all of a sudden. Even worse than he usually felt after one of Reborn's vicious training regiments. That was physical exhaustion, but this – this went much deeper.

Maybe Reborn sensed that he was giving up the fight, that he felt too vulnerable to continue anymore, because he didn't push it. Instead, he turned his attention back to Nana.

"Nana," Reborn's voice was calm, but also ringing with authority. "Put down the drink."

"Screw you!" she screamed, suddenly seeming to understand that there was someone else here, someone bigger than Tsuna who could and would override her. She picked up the glass and threw it, although her aim went wide, and so instead of flying at Reborn, it went to Tsuna. The brunet, so used to taking his mother's hits and blows, could only put his arms up in front of his face and hope for the best as the glass got closer.

And suddenly Reborn was _there, _reaching out and plucking the glass from the air like it didn't even matter, face going cold as he in turn threw the glass into the far wall. The glass shattered, and Nana jumped, looking spooked at the noise.

"Nana," Reborn snarled, now looking positively livid. "Put down the fucking drink or I will _break your arm._"

He shifted in front of Tsuna, pushing the boy behind him, where Tsuna leaned his head on the broad back, and tried to tell himself that everything was going to be _fine _after this. Reborn wouldn't be cruel – he never had been, not really. Even if it seemed like that's all he was being right now. He shivered, and reminded himself that if it hadn't been for Reborn, he would have walked away with shards of glass in and on him.

Somehow, Reborn's solid threat seemed to pierce through the fog of alcohol that had taken over Nana's mind. Frowning, she looked at the bottle and after a moment of doing nothing but staring at it, set it down. "There," she slurred, looking over at Reborn, "h-happy?"

"No," he said as he snatched the bottle up. He looked over at Tsuna. "Go through the house and get any bottles you find and bring them to me. I'm putting a stop to this _right now._"

"Y-you can' do that!" Nana yelled, reaching for the bottle desperately even as Reborn strode away, opening up the front door again. "I _need _that!"

"The only thing you _need," _Reborn hissed, dumping the contents of the alcohol down a nearby storm drain before throwing the bottle into the trashbin, "Is for someone to finally stand up to you and take this away. And from what I'm seeing, Tsuna's the only person who knows about your problems, so it looks like I'll have to do it."

"G-give those back, D-Dame-T-Tsuna!" Nana went after Tsuna as her son reappeared from the kitchen, holding what looked like ten bottles in his arms. He yelped as his mother came after him, but hastily dove to the side and ran for the front door. He tripped on the step, and the bottles went flying. "NO!"

The bottles smashed into the concrete, erupting into what looked like a shower of glass, the liquid staining the ground underneath them. Reborn sighed at his student's clumsiness, but did not berate him. He had more important things to do. So when Tsuna opened his mouth to apologize, Reborn cut him off. "It's fine. Go find the rest. And look sharp – alcoholics hide bottles everywhere they'll fit."

Tsuna nodded, and ran off again, avoiding Nana's flailing arms.

* * *

In the end, there were almost twenty bottles they pulled out of the house and smashed or threw away. Tsuna grabbed a broom and pan to sweep up the remnants of glass from the street so no one would get cut, while Reborn in turn moved about the house and double-checked that everything was sound. Nana had begun to come out of her drunken stupor by now, and was glaring at him with large, watery eyes that he supposed would have swayed him in any other situation.

"This is your own fault," he told her as he pulled open cabinets and searched carefully. "I know Tsuna hasn't done anything wrong, and he certainly hasn't been enough of a hellraiser to drive you to drink."

"He's the reason Iemitsu never comes home," Nana stubbornly stuck to her guns. "And he's the reason I don't have any friends. Everyone knows about _Dame-Tsuna._"

Reborn hissed between his teeth in warning. While it was true he called Tsuna that, he didn't mean it the same way those other people did. When Reborn said it, it was to incite growth. When other people said it, it was to cast blame and doubt for not being, in their eyes, as good as them. Which was about as incorrect as one could get, because Tsuna was so much better than them it was ridiculous.

"Iemitsu doesn't come home because he doesn't want to. Because he values work more than he values you, because work feels more natural than home does. And for your information, he knows about Tsuna, about what he's been doing, and he supports him. He's _proud _of his son, Nana. You seem to be the only one around here who isn't. Why? Tsuna's changed; he's _grown. _Isn't that worth some praise?"

He didn't understand what was going on, why Nana was fighting this. Even in Reborn's mind Tsuna was worth _some _praise. Yes he wasn't good at everything yet, but that's what Reborn was for. And what he was good at, he was _really _good at. He tried his best, had an earnest personality, and just wanted to care for his friends and family. How could anyone be disappointed in a child like that?

But she just turned her nose up at him. "He's _Dame-Tsuna," _she said, as if telling him that the sky was blue, gravity dropped apples, and he was a very slow man for not realizing the obvious.

"He's _Tsuna, _and he's your _**son.**_" Reborn rebuked, voice hard and low. Every insult slung against Tsuna just made him want to wrap his hands around her throat and squeeze. But he wouldn't. Instead, he would call up Iemitsu and tell the man what was going on, and then he'd tell him to get his ass down here and either get Nana some help or divorce her, because there was no way in hell Tsuna was going to live in this kind of household anymore. He didn't need this kind of stress in his life.

Tsuna poked his head around the corner then, looking somewhat calmed down. "Um, the glass has been cleaned up. I had Leon check, but he didn't find anything." Raising a hand to the lizard, Tsuna came forward and deposited the hitman's partner back on his shoulder. Reborn patted the boy's hair in silent thanks. Tsuna smiled up at him, but it was weak.

"We're done here. Let's go ahead and head back," the hitman told his pupil quietly. Nana was sulking and feeling sorry for herself, and so didn't notice them take their leave, Tsuna re-locking the house and placing the key back in its spot by the door. As they left, Reborn brought up the topics that had been bugging him.

"Do you know where your mother gets her drinks from?"

Tsuna shrugged. "Nope. Usually I just come home and they're there."

"Hm. Do you know the places here in town that sell liquor?"

Tsuna nodded. "Yeah, there are only three stores, actually." He rattled the names off, Reborn quickly memorizing them. "Why?"

"Because I'm going to call them and tell them they're not allowed to sell any more liquor to Nana Sawada if she comes in."

"Will that really stop her?"

"It'll stop her until Iemitsu gets here and gets her some help." Already his fingers were dancing over the keys on his phone, punching in the private line for the leader of the CEDEF. Seeing Tsuna flinch away, Reborn reached out and cupped the back of his neck with one hand, rubbing his thumb down the base of his head in soothing motions. "It'll be alright. You don't have to worry anymore, Tsunayoshi."

The vulnerable, scared look he got in turn made him want to hit something. Or someone. Fortunately, the click on the phone distracted him. _"Reborn? What are you doing calling me? Is something wrong?"_

"Yes, Iemitsu, it is. Your wife..." What followed was an in-depth summary of what had been going on during the past few years, Reborn occasionally turning to Tsuna for input, which he quietly gave. He didn't flinch away, although Reborn kept a hand on his student's neck just in case. One never knew with Tsuna.

There was a long, stunned silence on the opposite line when Reborn finally finished, and for a moment Reborn harbored the thought that maybe Iemitsu had hung up on him mid-conversation and he hadn't noticed. But then Iemitsu's voice filtered through, shocked and small. _"I-I didn't... oh god, all those times... I thought m-maybe she just... had had a bad day or something. But she... oh __**god. **__I-Is Tsuna okay? Please tell me he's okay!"_

Reborn smiled. At least one parent hadn't forgotten him. "He's fine, Iemitsu. You want to talk to him?" He looked over, making eye contact with Tsuna and frowning when the boy began to mouth _no, _shaking his head. Reborn cocked an eye at him, giving him a you'll-do-it-or-_die _look and he gave in, pouting as Reborn handed the phone over.

"Dad? Y—what? Yes, I'm fine. No, I'm not hurt. The glass didn't connect, Reborn caught it. Mm. Dunno. I want to say about five or so years ago, but my memory's probably failing me." He rubbed the back of his neck, and Reborn could hear Iemitsu exclaiming something through the phone. "No, I'm pretty bad at remembering things like that. Really. Why would I lie about something like that? What? No, no I'm not. Yes, my grades are fine. No my teachers aren't giving me any trouble." he paused again, and Iemitsu's voice changed, going lower. "Um, I'll ask Reborn. Hang on."

Tsuna looked up at him, putting a hand over the mouthpiece. "Are we going to stay here tonight, or are we still on-track to Italy?"

Reborn considered it. "I suppose we can hang back, if you really feel like it, and go on to Italy once all this is over and done. That's what you want, isn't it?"

His student smiled. "Yeah. Um, is there a place we can stay, then? Dad probably won't want me living at home while this is going on."

Reborn nodded again. "There's a hotel run by the Vongola over by the airport. You can bunk there until Iemitsu gets here."

"Okay." He put the phone back to his ear. "Dad? Um, I'm gonna stay here. Yeah, Reborn says there's a hotel run by the Vongola I can stay at. The one by the airport. Is Reborn gonna stay with me?" He looked up at the hitman, smiling when the older man nodded. "Yeah, he is. Okay. Yeah, okay. Okay. Thanks. Bye."

He sighed as he hung up, handing the phone back over. "Dad's gonna come into town after he tells Grandfather what's going on. After that, I head to Italy, and he'll stay here and make sure Mom gets the help she needs. He'll send me regular reports, and once he's sure she's stable he'll come back to work, and I can go visit. Until then though, he wants me to stay clear of the house."

Reborn nodded, content with the way things were going so far. "Then we'd better go back and tell your friends about the change. Do you want to tell them about-?"

"No." Tsuna's hands tightened into fists. "I don't."

"Okay." It spoke a lot about their relationship that Reborn let it drop instead of badgering him to tell his Guardians. Some things were private, after all, and this was one of them.

The party was winding down when they returned to Takesushi. The loud chatter had been replaced by quieter talking, and Tsuna was amused to see that both Hibari and Mukuro had shown up at last, the two on opposite ends of the shop, each eating their own meal. "Welcome!" Tsuyoshi called as they entered, only to jolt in surprise when he realized who it was. "Oi Takeshi, your friend is back!"

"Yo, Tsuna! How'd it go?" Yamamoto was running critical eyes over him, clearly looking for anything wrong. For once, Tsuna was glad his mother's strikes hadn't connected.

"Well. Mom had some trouble cleaning up, so she needed by help. Reborn's too."

"But everything's okay now?"

"Yes. Well actually, um, there's been a slight change in plans. Grandfather wants me to remain here for a bit longer, and meet up with you guys later on in Italy."

"So we're going ahead, Boss?" Hayato asked, apparently not concerned with the change.

"Yes. Reborn's going to stay with me, so you'll have to teach the ones who don't know Italian. Sorry, Hayato."

"It's fine, Boss. That's what I'm here for, after all." He gave the brunet a thumbs-up in reassurance. "Oi, Lawn-head, Baseball Freak, over here! We need to review your Italian! It was atrocious last time I checked." He led the two Guardians elsewhere in the shop, and Tsuna let out a breath he wasn't aware of holding.

Reborn nudged him over to an empty table in the back. "C'mon Tsuna. Let's get you fed, and then we'll go see about that hotel room." He kept a hand on his student's back as they moved, unable to find it in himself to pull away. It felt like Tsuna still needed him to lean on for a bit longer, and Reborn was fine with that.

"Thanks, Reborn," Tsuna murmured as they saw down, brown eyes finding his easily. "Really, I don't know what I would have done without you there."

His tutor chuckled, reaching across the space to ruffle his hair. "You'd have figured it out eventually, but it would have been harder on you. My job is to support you until you're able to stand on your own, so don't be afraid to tell me something like this next time, okay?"

"Y-yeah. Sorry."

"Then consider this water under the bridge. Now, what do you want to eat? I'll pay this time, since I'm in a good mood."

* * *

Author's Notes

And that's that. This is an idea that's bounced around in my head for about a year and a half, going from _yes I want to do it _to _no its too out of canon you should just abandon it. _Finally I grew some balls and decided to just throw it out there and let it lie where it may.

I always thought that Nana would pick up drinking to deal with life, since that's usually why one does pick up those sorts of habits. While yes, Reborn does help Tsuna grow a bit, that growth would come potentially too late and far too slow for Nana, who I think by that time would have started at the bottle. At first she tells herself its only 'one or two drinks' but those soon multiply until she's consuming entire bottles, and then there's nothing left to do but vent her anger and upset on anyone who comes home (usually Tsuna).

I also see Nana as the type to hide her alcoholism when the younger kids like Lambo and I-pin are around though, as she honestly loves them and doesn't want to hurt them. She lashes out at Tsuna because, in her mind, he owes her for being a failure, and _someone _needs to make her feel better, so why not be her brick wall for a bit? Reborn and Iemitsu honestly wouldn't put up with this, and especially not Iemitsu because even though he loves his job more than his family at times, he still _loves _his family. And I think he'd be proud of Tsuna for coming as far as he had, even if he's not quite as proud as Reborn is.

There's not much else to the story beyond that. I think Iemitsu would get Nana the help she needs, Nana would have enough therapy given to her to realize what she's done, and apologize to Tsuna properly for it. (Or not, if you're the type that really loves that angst hardcore.)

Anyhow, comments, questions, concerns, leave them behind and I'll get to them.


End file.
